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3rd POV
In another building, miles away and several stories above the restless streets of Manhattan, Ted stood by himself, staring down at his phone.
Robin Scherbatsky.
Her name glowed on the screen, bright and unavoidable which made Ted sighed slowly.
He already knew how this was going to go. Still, he swallowed, straightened his posture out of pure habit, and answered the call.
"Hey—" He wanted to greet her warmly, but his voice got cut by her.
{...Ted.}
Her voice was low and calm. Maybe a little too calm in Ted's ear. Not warm and even not affectionate. The kind of calm that made a man brace for the impact of disaster.
Ted swallowed again.
"Ro–Robin. I swear, I was just telling the kids how amazing you are," he rushed out, immediately going into defense mode. "Like…really amazing." cleaning his hands and didn't blame anyone.
Silence followed the phone call. It's not really long before he hears Robin's voice again.
{Amazing my ass!}
….Robin's voice exploded in his ear. Yep. There it was.
Ted winced, pulling the phone slightly away as if that would help. "...Yeah, You're amazing," he added quickly, trying to defuse the situation with humor. "I mean, your ass. Your ass is amazing, Robin." He chuckled lightly, partly to calm himself down.
Ted moved across the room, poured himself a glass of scotch, and walked toward the massive window overlooking New York City. Thirty floors up, the city shimmered beneath him with lights, movement and life of people.
{TED!}
Robin's voice snapped him back.
He took a slow sip of his drink, unfazed by her voice. He already calms himself and is just trying to defuse the bomb of Robin. "What are you so worried about, Robin?" he said calmly. "It's gonna be fine."
Another pause, then her voice came back again, a little quieter this time and less sharp. {Ted… I don't want them to hate me.}
That made him stop.
{They're your kids. And Tracy's kids. They see me as the cool aunt. The great aunt.} Her voice cracked just a little. {I don't want them to see me as the woman who slept with their dad and become the worst aunt.}
Ted exhaled, leaning his forehead lightly against the glass.
"…Then marry me."
The words came out calm, a flicker of casual conversation and maybe almost effortless.
{Ted…. Please stop joking.}
She snapped again, but this time it lacked real anger. Her voice even got a little lower than before.
Ted laughed softly but it only made her teeth clenched on the other end of the line. He could practically hear it, her teeth gritted to each other on the line.
A few seconds passed and the tension eased.
"It's really going to be fine, Robin," Ted said gently. "They don't think like that. Honestly? They think I'm the lame one who got lucky enough to sleep with you."
He scoffed at himself. "Those little brats. They have no idea how great and handsome I was in my youth."
That finally did it, Robin laughed hearing that.
{Oh really? You mean the same 'great' guy I rejected multiple times? You did tell them that part, right?} Her voice turned teasing.
"…Well," Ted said, smirking as he took another sip of scotch, "....the important part is that I got you in the end, didn't I?" He said casually and got a little chuckled and snorted from Robin.
Then his voice went lower and affectionately asked her, "How are you, Robin?" he asked smoothly, "Where are you right now?"
She sighed, the edge gone now. {I'm at my apartment. Why?}
Then change to softer and playful. {....You wanna come over?}
She paused before adding mockingly. {Oh right. You're still telling bedtime stories to your kids huh. What a shame.} She said smugly.
Ted's voice dropped, he knows that she's being playful right now, a little naughty to him.
"....You know I could come over and give you a very great sex like old times right?."
After saying that, silence followed on the line but he heard a gulping sound on the line.
{...I'm sorry.}
Her voice was suddenly cautious, because she knew he meant it. If she continues to be playful right now, he will come over to her and have his way to her.
She had work in the morning….and Ted Mosby had never been bad at keeping his promises. He said he will give her great sex, then he will give her that.
"That's what I thought," Ted said with a quiet snort. "Don't worry about this, Robin. They still think you're the greatest aunt in the world."
{…Alright. Fine.}
"Good." Ted smiled. "Now don't stay up too late. And drink moderately, okay?"
She groaned. {Yes, Daddy.}
"…Hmm."
Ted ended the call with a little grunt on his voice, he even considered going to her place right now, but rejected it immediately.
He stood there for a moment longer, gazing at the city with a melancholic look, then finished his scotch in one slow drink.
He returned to his desk, powered on the projector, and initiated a video call to his home again. Without waiting longer, the screen lit up almost instantly.
Luke and Penny were already sitting on the couch, snacks in hand and waiting for him.
Ted's smile spread wide. "Well," he chuckled, folding his arms on the desk, "I see you two couldn't wait for story time again." His voice changed more playfully than before talking with Robin.
Penny rolled her eyes and Luke took a sip from a can of Monster, didn't care what he said and just enjoyed the carbonated drinks in his hands.
Ted narrowed his eyes at him, ready to scold him to stop drinking that but then stopped.
Charlie, the butler, probably gave him one can as an apology.
Ted let it slide for now or he will get another pout from his kids again.
"So," he said, leaning forward, a familiar sparkle in his eyes. "Who wants to hear the story about me… and how Uncle Barney once tasted the Liberty Bell? Yeah, you heard me, me and your uncle Barney licked the Liberty bell, you know how cool that is?!."
Penny immediately rolled her eyes so hard after hearing Ted exaggerated and stupid words.
Luke, on the other hand, leaned back on the couch and let out an annoyed grumble, clearly unimpressed. {Dad, that's gross,} he said flatly, lifting the Monster can again. {And besides, you still haven't finished the story from before!}
He took another sip, loud and unapologetic but Penny's hand shot out instantly.
*Slap!.
She smacked his wrist and shot him a sharp glare. {…Shut up,} she whispered furiously. {....You're making it worse!}
Ted heard every word even though they whispered to each other.
….Of course he did.
And of course… he chose to ignore it.
"Yeah!" Ted said enthusiastically, pointing at Luke with both hands like he'd just solved a murder mystery. "You're absolutely right, Luke! Great job! Excellent!" He even added a pair of finger guns for emphasis.
Luke froze a little after. That was the exact moment he realized he'd made a terrible mistake. They should move on to faster the story but here he is trying to slow the progress.
Well, it's too late now.
Ted's grin widened, clearly enjoying himself far too much.
Luke frowned, then sighed, sinking deeper into the couch. Still, despite his regret, curiosity gnawed at him. The story wasn't finished and he wanted to know the rest of the story.
Penny crossed her arms and huffed quietly, clearly annoyed.
….But even she couldn't deny it. She wanted to know too. She wanted to know how her dad and Aunt Robin actually ended in that story, what really happened between them before everything settled into the version she knew now.
Ted noticed the look on her face. The impatience. The curiosity. The unspoken just get on with it already.
He leaned forward slightly, resting his elbows on the desk, his tone shifting a little less playful now and more deliberate.
"Alright," he said calmly, a familiar storyteller's glint returning to his eyes. "You're right. I owe you that part."
Penny straightened up and Luke lowered the can.
"And kids," Ted added, smiling softly, "this part… matters."
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3rd POV
Ted's apartment was occupied by three people who shared the exact same condition. A very specific, very painful disease.
….Hangover.
It had been two days of identical mornings, two days of regret, dry mouths, pounding heads, and questionable life choices.
Barney, Marshall, and Lily sat sprawled across the couch like fallen soldiers after a glorious but catastrophic battle. Their energy levels were perfectly synchronized: zero.
They had an incredible night.
….But they absolutely hated the morning.
Apparently, Lily hadn't protested at all the night before. No lectures, no reminders and no responsible adult behavior. She had simply gone with the flow, just as drunk and reckless as the rest of them.
Barney?
Of course he loved it. Even without sleeping with anyone, which he loved the most maybe, he'd still had a legendary time with booze, laughter, chaos, and his best friend Ted. For Barney, that alone was a win.
Marshall?
Marshall had convinced himself that he could finish his paper in one night. Of course with him getting A in the way, yeah he thinks he's the Kid!.
Reality, unfortunately, disagreed. Getting a hell of the night with his friends and best friend Ted.
Now, all three of them sat there, groaning, rubbing their temples, squinting at the daylight as if it were personally offending them and like somehow, holding their heads might magically cure the hangover.
…It didn't.
Nothing did magically disappear.
Just as they remained trapped in their shared misery, the door to Ted's bedroom opened.
Robin stepped out.
She wore a relaxed smile, her hair slightly messy but already neat, her posture loose and unbothered by what she had been through the night. Unlike the previous morning, there was no trace of regret on her face.
If anything…
….She looked satisfied.
"Morning, people!" Robin greeted cheerfully. Her voice was not quiet at all and what she got after greeting the people in the room was three simultaneous groans erupted from the couch.
"…Hangover," Lily muttered weakly, cracking one eye open to glance at Robin. She wanted to be excited about whatever progress had clearly happened between Robin and Ted, but enthusiasm required energy, and energy required a functioning head.
Marshall raised one hand toward Robin as if trying to stop her with sheer willpower, like some kind of hungover wizard casting a defensive spell to stop the enemies.
Barney, meanwhile, attempted to stand.
….A bad idea.
"…I have to go…" he groaned, swaying dangerously. "Ugh…" He fell on the table and tried to stand again.
He glanced at Robin, who looked completely fine, despite the fact that they had all been drinking the same champagne.
Robin, of course, was fine.
She'd gone home with Ted. And she'd had a great night. Yup, a great time of the night!.
"Alright," Robin said, stepping forward. "Let me help you get a taxi." She steadied Barney, then glanced back at Lily. "See you tonight?"
Lily responded by lifting her thumb weakly in the air, clearly proud of Robin… in spirit.
But then, Ted emerged from his bedroom just then, taking in the scene, the defeated trio on the couch, the groaning, the drama that still unfolds in this beautiful morning.
He smirked. Maybe a little smug on his face, looking at all of them one by one.
"What are you guys doing on such a lovely Sunday?" he teased loudly. "Wow. You're all really weak."
A pillow flew at his head.
….Then another.
It's a gift from both Lily and Marshall, and a little response from Barney who scoffed at him.
Ted laughed, completely unfazed by their response. "Alright, alright," he said, surrendering. "I'll make you guys pancakes."
Barney perked up slightly.
Ted turned toward the door, where Robin and Barney were standing. "You want some too, Robin?" he asked casually, like absolutely nothing significant had happened between them.
Robin smiled. She liked that response. "Oh, no thanks," she said lightly. "I gotta go." But the moment Ted mentioned pancakes, Barney abruptly let go of Robin's arm.
Too abruptly and a little forcefully making Robin stumble a little, startled by what he's doing.
"Hmph. Your loss," Barney said smugly, already turning back toward the couch. "Ted, I want one."
Robin stared at him, completely baffled and more than a little annoyed.
Just seconds ago, he'd been dying.
Now he was betraying her for pancakes.
"Coming right up," Ted replied cheerfully, grinning as he headed to the kitchen.
Robin looks at Barney now sitting back down between Lily and Marshall like they are eager to wait for pancakes, even though their head still hurts but its eagerness is radiating from them.
"…Wait," she said, blinking. "What just happened?"